LM3429
,
LM3429-Q1
www.ti.com
SNVS616H –APRIL 2009–REVISED JULY 2015
Application Information (continued)
8.1.3 Output Capacitor
For boost and buck-boost regulators, the output capacitor (CO) provides energy to the load when the recirculating
diode (D1) is reverse biased during the first switching subinterval. An output capacitor in a buck topology will
simply reduce the LED current ripple (ΔiLED-PP) below the inductor current ripple (ΔiL-PP). In all cases, COis sized
to provide a desired ΔiLED-PP. As mentioned in the Inductor section, ΔiLED-PP is recommended by manufacturers to
be less than 40% of the average LED current (ILED).
COshould be carefully chosen to account for derating due to temperature and operating voltage. It must also
have the necessary RMS current rating. Ceramic capacitors are the best choice due to their high ripple current
rating, long lifetime, and good temperature performance. An X7R dieletric rating is suggested.
8.1.4 Input Capacitors
The input capacitance (CIN) provides energy during the discontinuous portions of the switching period. For buck
and buck-boost regulators, CIN provides energy during tON and during tOFF, the input voltage source charges up
CIN with the average input current (IIN). For boost regulators, CIN only needs to provide the ripple current due to
the direct connection to the inductor. CIN is selected given the maximum input voltage ripple (ΔvIN-PP) which can
be tolerated. ΔvIN-PP is suggested to be less than 10% of the input voltage (VIN).
An input capacitance at least 100% greater than the calculated CIN value is recommended to account for derating
due to temperature and operating voltage. When PWM dimming, even more capacitance can be helpful to
minimize the large current draw from the input voltage source during the rising transition of the LED current
waveform.
The chosen input capacitors must also have the necessary RMS current rating. Ceramic capacitors are again the
best choice due to their high ripple current rating, long lifetime, and good temperature performance. An X7R
dieletric rating is suggested.
For most applications, TI recommends bypassing the VIN pin with an 0.1-µF ceramic capacitor placed as close as
possible to the pin. In situations where the bulk input capacitance may be far from the LM3429 device, a 10-Ω
series resistor can be placed between the bulk input capacitance and the bypass capacitor, creating a 150 kHz
filter to eliminate undesired high frequency noise coupling.
8.1.5 N-Channel MosFET (NFET)
The LM3429 requires an external NFET (Q1) as the main power MosFET for the switching regulator. Q1 is
recommended to have a voltage rating at least 15% higher than the maximum transistor voltage to ensure safe
operation during the ringing of the switch node. In practice, all switching regulators have some ringing at the
switch node due to the diode parasitic capacitance and the lead inductance. The current rating is recommended
to be at least 10% higher than the average transistor current. The power rating is then verified by calculating the
power loss given the RMS transistor current and the NFET on-resistance (RDS-ON).
In general, the NFET should be chosen to minimize total gate charge (Qg) whenever switching frequencies are
high and minimize RDS-ON otherwise. This will minimize the dominant power losses in the system. Frequently,
higher current NFETs in larger packages are chosen for better thermal performance.
8.1.6 Re-Circulating Diode
A re-circulating diode (D1) is required to carry the inductor current during tOFF. The most efficient choice for D1 is
a Schottky diode due to low forward voltage drop and near-zero reverse recovery time. Similar to Q1, D1 is
recommended to have a voltage rating at least 15% higher than the maximum transistor voltage to ensure safe
operation during the ringing of the switch node and a current rating at least 10% higher than the average diode
current. The power rating is verified by calculating the power loss through the diode. This is accomplished by
checking the typical diode forward voltage from the I-V curve on the product data sheet and multiplying by the
average diode current. In general, higher current diodes have a lower forward voltage and come in better
performing packages minimizing both power losses and temperature rise.
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